LASHDIP FROM HEAVEN: An Eyelash Miracle
Jul 05, 2011 Posted by Corrie Shenigo
From spidery-stiff to soft and natural, there isn’t a woman I know who doesn’t pine (and spend a good portion of her cosmetics budget) on the eternal quest to acquire the most fabulous of fringe: eye fringe, that is. You know… lashes. Dark, long and feathery – my quest for the perfect other-worldy lashes wasn’t about to be accomplished by mascara alone.
Visual: Heavenly clouds part. Angels sing. A pair of benevolent hands reach down from the clouds offering up a miracle: LashDip
Okay. So the hands reaching down weren’t nearly as manly as in the picture (neither was the hand reaching up for that matter, as it was mine) – in fact they were quite lovely ‘cause I was fortunate enough to be under the gentle care of LashDip’s innovative creators Jessica Harley and Gina Mondragon. Mondragon, an award-winning hair colorist and chemical technician at Vidal Sassoon, and Harley, a stellar makeup artist and curator to the successful launch of two exclusive cosmetic lines, created LashDip lash-wonder out of a mutual passion for lush, plush lashes without the hassle of daily smudging, smearing and… uggh… application. We’re talking jump in the pool, cry a puddle of tears, sweat-your-booty-off safe lashes.
It takes one to know one, and these two mavens reached into their cumulative beauty no-how vault and pulled out a plum: the answer to every modern gal’s mascara dreams, a lash ‘dipping’ application that once applied delivers up to 6-weeks of smudge, smear and application free fringe perfection. Fo realz?!! Yep. Fo realz.
And lest my gushing leads you to believe that I’m on the LashDip payroll – let me assure you, I’m not. But I really did get the opportunity to try out LashDip and I literally felt like I hit the eyelash lottery. If compliments were candy, I’d be in desperate need of the gym (fortunately LashDip is workout-proof). My lashes, after a dip in LashDip’s inky, black pool resembled the most perfect mascara application to ever grace the lashes of anyone… ANYONE. Think long, separated, curled to my liking and shiny eye-fringe – I swear I didn’t wear eye makeup for several weeks… I didn’t need to.
So here’s the skinny. It’s not really a dip. I mean it’s not like you dip your eyeball in a vat of glossy goo like you’re bobbing for apples. Nope. You lay back on a cushy massage table, maybe some soft music is playing, while your technician (not to rub it in… but mine was Mondragon, tee-hee) paints LashDip’s inky-black jelly-like substance on your lashes with a teeny brush – one by one. Painstaking… yes. Obviously, these gals are committed (there are nearly 50 salon technicians across the country certified to ‘dip’ your ‘lashes’.) The coating shrink-wraps (I just thought of shrinky-dinks.) around each lash essentially sculpting your fringe into any preferred mascara application look – thick and curled, au natural, Tammy-Faye – okay… maybe not Tammy Faye, but seriously pick your poison, it can be semi-permanently yours!
Now before you take the ‘poison’ comment to task… LashDip is perfectly safe. It doesn’t contain Aniline or Formaldehyde (remember our article on the Brazilian Blowout?) LashDip is composed of the purest ingredients available, is pharmaceutical grade and is hypoallergenic.
Putting all the cards on the table, there is the eentsy-est bit of home maintenance to do to keep your LashDip all fresh and shiny. It’s best to keep your lashes H2O free for the first 24 hours after application – It just helps your fringe settle in. And while some jump right into a workout, hot water or sauna (in my case Bikram ‘Hot’ Yoga) – I took the cautionary “please god let this LashDip last forever” approach and stayed away from hot and sweaty for a good five days. (Did laziness play a part in this? Don’t judge me.)
Your LashDip technician will also kindly send you home with a “LashSeal” that can be applied to freshen up your fringe a few times a week – and will also extend the life of your lush lashes. And using an oil-free make-up remover is imperative to keeping your ‘dip’ in fine form.
Sadly, my dip is no longer… but it did hold up for four solid weeks and only started teetering on the fifth week. It’s not exactly cheap at $200 - $300 a pop, but rolling out of bed in the morning looking superfly for up to six weeks might just be worth it. (I do apologize for the 80’s reference. ‘Superfly’ means gorgeous, amazing and beautific. You know, superfly.) The beauty of this product is that when it did finally wear itself off my lashes, there was absolutely no damage to my own natural eye fringe. I loved, Loved, LOVED my LashDip. It was like the best summer romance with an amicable ending. (*sob) Shower, swim, sweat… even a barrage of estrogen-induced tears… your LashDip will have you seriously considering a break-up with your water-proof mascara… for good.
Visual: Heavenly clouds part. Angels sing. A pair of benevolent hands reach down from the clouds offering up a miracle: LashDip
Okay. So the hands reaching down weren’t nearly as manly as in the picture (neither was the hand reaching up for that matter, as it was mine) – in fact they were quite lovely ‘cause I was fortunate enough to be under the gentle care of LashDip’s innovative creators Jessica Harley and Gina Mondragon. Mondragon, an award-winning hair colorist and chemical technician at Vidal Sassoon, and Harley, a stellar makeup artist and curator to the successful launch of two exclusive cosmetic lines, created LashDip lash-wonder out of a mutual passion for lush, plush lashes without the hassle of daily smudging, smearing and… uggh… application. We’re talking jump in the pool, cry a puddle of tears, sweat-your-booty-off safe lashes.
It takes one to know one, and these two mavens reached into their cumulative beauty no-how vault and pulled out a plum: the answer to every modern gal’s mascara dreams, a lash ‘dipping’ application that once applied delivers up to 6-weeks of smudge, smear and application free fringe perfection. Fo realz?!! Yep. Fo realz.
And lest my gushing leads you to believe that I’m on the LashDip payroll – let me assure you, I’m not. But I really did get the opportunity to try out LashDip and I literally felt like I hit the eyelash lottery. If compliments were candy, I’d be in desperate need of the gym (fortunately LashDip is workout-proof). My lashes, after a dip in LashDip’s inky, black pool resembled the most perfect mascara application to ever grace the lashes of anyone… ANYONE. Think long, separated, curled to my liking and shiny eye-fringe – I swear I didn’t wear eye makeup for several weeks… I didn’t need to.
So here’s the skinny. It’s not really a dip. I mean it’s not like you dip your eyeball in a vat of glossy goo like you’re bobbing for apples. Nope. You lay back on a cushy massage table, maybe some soft music is playing, while your technician (not to rub it in… but mine was Mondragon, tee-hee) paints LashDip’s inky-black jelly-like substance on your lashes with a teeny brush – one by one. Painstaking… yes. Obviously, these gals are committed (there are nearly 50 salon technicians across the country certified to ‘dip’ your ‘lashes’.) The coating shrink-wraps (I just thought of shrinky-dinks.) around each lash essentially sculpting your fringe into any preferred mascara application look – thick and curled, au natural, Tammy-Faye – okay… maybe not Tammy Faye, but seriously pick your poison, it can be semi-permanently yours!
Now before you take the ‘poison’ comment to task… LashDip is perfectly safe. It doesn’t contain Aniline or Formaldehyde (remember our article on the Brazilian Blowout?) LashDip is composed of the purest ingredients available, is pharmaceutical grade and is hypoallergenic.
Putting all the cards on the table, there is the eentsy-est bit of home maintenance to do to keep your LashDip all fresh and shiny. It’s best to keep your lashes H2O free for the first 24 hours after application – It just helps your fringe settle in. And while some jump right into a workout, hot water or sauna (in my case Bikram ‘Hot’ Yoga) – I took the cautionary “please god let this LashDip last forever” approach and stayed away from hot and sweaty for a good five days. (Did laziness play a part in this? Don’t judge me.)
Your LashDip technician will also kindly send you home with a “LashSeal” that can be applied to freshen up your fringe a few times a week – and will also extend the life of your lush lashes. And using an oil-free make-up remover is imperative to keeping your ‘dip’ in fine form.
Sadly, my dip is no longer… but it did hold up for four solid weeks and only started teetering on the fifth week. It’s not exactly cheap at $200 - $300 a pop, but rolling out of bed in the morning looking superfly for up to six weeks might just be worth it. (I do apologize for the 80’s reference. ‘Superfly’ means gorgeous, amazing and beautific. You know, superfly.) The beauty of this product is that when it did finally wear itself off my lashes, there was absolutely no damage to my own natural eye fringe. I loved, Loved, LOVED my LashDip. It was like the best summer romance with an amicable ending. (*sob) Shower, swim, sweat… even a barrage of estrogen-induced tears… your LashDip will have you seriously considering a break-up with your water-proof mascara… for good.